To have been unable, owing to sad circumstances over
which I have had no control, to keep in close and constant
touch with you, the beloved children of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, since
His passing from this world, is to me a cause of sad surprise
and deep and bitter regret. To say that ever since the Dawn
of a New Day has broken upon me I have in the least felt
reluctant or disinclined to enter into relationship with every
one of you, or felt indifferent to a Cause which is so close
and dear to your hearts, would indeed betray every
sentiment of love and fellowship which animates every one
of us in our servitude to His Holy Threshold. It was rather
my utter exhaustion, my profound feelings of sorrow, the
overwhelming sense of my own position and responsibilities
and the extreme pressure of work that have caused me to
maintain such a long silence and seem forgetful of those
brave and valiant lovers of the Master in that land.

Of the thoughts that sustained and comforted me during
my hours of restful retirement was the realization, never
dismissed from my mind, that in the German friends the
Master will surely find loyal and grateful children who will
repay the tender love and paternal care which He had for
them with a devotion and service, so profound and lasting
that will prove worthy of the many blessings that have been
theirs in the past.

The news of your most spiritual gatherings, since the
Great Plan of the Master as revealed in His Testament has
been unfolded to our eyes; the formation and functioning of
the National Body with efficiency and harmony; the
extension of your activities; the widening of your
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correspondence; the generous and spontaneous help you
have extended us in connection with our difficulties in the
Holy Land and above all the spirit of ready devotion and
ever-increasing zeal which is back of it all—these are sweet
thoughts that cheer the bereaved Ladies of the Holy
Household and encourage here and abroad the many friends
who look forward to the hour when all the Master has
promised His friends in Germany will come to be fulfilled.

Having returned to the Holy Land with a renewed vigour
and a refreshed spirit, I shall not fail with the help of the
Master to do my part in enabling you to carry on further
and still further the Glorious Standard of Bahá to the very
heart and uttermost confines of Germany and thus hasten
the Day when the Spirit of Faith and Peace as revealed in the
Cause of Bahá’u’lláh will fill the world and the darkness of
strife be no more.

In sweet remembrance at the Three Holy Shrines of your
labours of love for His Cause, I am and remain your brother
and coworker in His service.